We were lucky to catch up with Avigail Loria Aguilar recently and have shared our conversation below.
Avigail , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear how you think where to draw the line in terms of asking friends and family to support your business – what’s okay and what’s over the line?
My friends and family have been the biggest supporters of my business. It’s a bit hard to bring into any conversation that you are a small-business owner but I’ve learned that my business has become the biggest part of my personality. It’s putting myself out there and saying “Hey! Look at this awesome thing I made with my two hands!!” There is a few mixed-emotions on what goods i sell, such as being called a “old lady” for crocheting and making items during my free time but those words don’t bother me anymore. What makes my day is the amount of kind words that are shared to me about my craft! My family even tells their friends about my business to help promote me and shows off my social media! My grandmother was a seamstress growing up and I’ve been compared to her, family saying “you really are your grandmothers granddaughter” and I take pride in that. I would never take granted any of the support I’ve been shown. It’s been a journey, learning the hard game of starting out but its been worth every second and every cent.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
My name is Avigail, I am a 23 year old crocheter. My business is called “Crocheting with Avi” and I specialize in clothing, accessories, plush animals, blankets, and tapestries. I started crocheting last year, 2023, I found the craft and fell in love with the items I could make with my hands. In 2024, i started my business and started to sell my items. My biggest achievement is seeing the happiness and satisfaction that my customers get from my products. My grandfather ,who was my biggest fan, passed away earlier this year in august but he was so proud of my work and would’ve been proud of how far my business has come so far. I would love my future customers to know that I take custom orders and would love to take any challenge that might seem difficult!
How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.
I just recently launched my website and I have seen a flux of new and easier ways to help sell my items. There are so many more pros than cons to having a website, that I’ve seen so far, such as its so much easier to help get my craft out there and it’s easier to communicate with my client face to let them know when I have new arrivals coming through or when an item is out of stock will be returning, but some cons I do see are having to express any delays during shipping or others features that may or may not be out of my control.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
A lesson I learned was not to expect business to come quicker than expected. Your business will takeoff when it is ready for you and your mental stability. I thought I was ready to grow my business a bit more than what it was at the beginning, but with my grandfather‘s news of cancer and his passing, I had come to the realization that I was in fact not ready but now I have made my business a little bit bigger and I’m so proud of where it has come from. My advice is even through the little pivots of life, there will be a time where it’s ready for you and you’ll just have to wait for it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Crocheting-with-Avi.square.site
- Instagram: CrochetingwithAvi
- Facebook: https://Facebook.com/crochetingwithavi
